A Novel E-Social Servicescape Perspective: A Mixed-Methods Exploration of Audience Members’ Interactions During Sports Event Broadcasting in a Livestreaming Media Environment

Nowadays, platforms like Douyin attract large audiences during major sports events. In this study, with the aim of enhancing audience satisfaction in livestreaming media environments, we applied social servicescape theory to a livestreaming media environment and used a mixed-methods approach to understand why audiences choose to watch sports events on new media. We developed a theoretical model of audience satisfaction to examine sports event broadcasts on short video platforms. Following 24 semi-structured interviews, we conducted a quantitative survey of 490 participants. The results showed that user interaction and similarity are crucial factors influencing audience members' choice of livestreaming and that the social attributes and interactive features of livestreaming enhance their sense of immersion, belonging, and nostalgia. Moreover, interactivity and similarity positively impact these emotional experiences, significantly boosting audience satisfaction. This research expands the theoretical understanding of online interactions and offers new insights for designing engaging livestreaming platforms.